Walk for railway house cars



May 13, 1947. G. G. GILPIN` WALK'FOR RAILWAY HOUSE CARS Filed Jan. 1o, 1944 f@ UUUUMUMV@ nu nfs Patented May 13, 1947 WALK FOR RAILWAY HOUSE CARS Garth G. Gilpin, Chicago, Ill., assignor to Standard Railway Equipment Manufacturing Company, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Delaware Application January 10, 1944, Serial No. 517,754

Claims.

The invention relates to a walk (or running boards as sometimes called) on the roof of a railway house car and extending continuously between opposite ends of the car at the middle of the car for use by the trainmen.

One of the objects of the invention is to reduce the vertical space occupied by the walk and thereby either increase the inside height of the lading space of the car or reduce the vertical overall height of the car. In other words, obtain the maximum height of the lading space of the car with the minimum height of the car from the rail.

The Association of American Railroads have adopted certain maximum outside dimensions of railroad cars (called a clearance diagram) and railroad cars must be within such dimensions or they will not be accepted in interchange by the various railroads. The modern house cars, such as box, automobile and furniture cars, are designed to take full advantage of these maximum dimensions. For instance, the top of the Walk is coincident with the clearance diagram, therefore, a reduction of a half inch in the vertical height of a walk means a car having a half inch higher lading space, which is important and quite desirable today.

For years walks for railway house cars have been madeof three one inchplanks with an inch space between adjacent planks, but recently a number of designs of metallic walks have been introduced and in such metallic walks it has been found advisable to have openings in them so that snow and ice will not accumulate on the walks.

It has also been found advisable to provide a space between the walk and the top of the roof of the car to allow such snow and ice to run down the inclined roof. Said Association of American Railroads has established a minimum of SA" at the ridge and 11A at the o utside of the walk for the space between the walk and top of the car.

Most roofs of railway cars slope downwardly in opposite directions from the longitudinal center of the car or ridge, as it is called, and one of the objects of the invention is to provide a walk for such a car which is positioned over the ridge and comprises a plurality of spaced longitudinally extending vertically disposed parallel bars having the upper edges thereof in a horizontal plane to provide a walking surface for the trainmen and wherein the respective bars increase in depth from the middle of the walk to the outer sides thereof.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a transverse cross `section Aof a part of a car roof showing the relation of my improved walk thereto.

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal cross section of the roof shown in Fig. 1 showing the relation of the roof carlines thereto.

Fig. 3 shows the saddles for supporting my walk upon the roof carline caps with the smaller bars omitted.

Fig. 4 shows a modiiication of the invention wherein the component bars of my device vary in thickness and depth.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged view of the walk shown in Fig. 1.

Figs. 1 and 2 show a roof comprising roof sheets I slowing downwardly on opposite sides oi the ridge or apex 2 at the longitudinal center of the car. The roof sheets l are provided with upstanding marginal flanges 3 with a carline cap 4 straddling the adjacent flanges of adjacent sheets and securing them together.

My improved walk comprises a plurality of spaced longitudinally extending vertically disposed parallel bars 5 which extend between and are supported by the carline caps 4 with the upper surface of the walk substantially flush with the ltops of the caps adjacent the ridge of the roof. The upper edges of the bars 5 are in a substantially horizontal plane to form a walking surface for the trainrnen and the depth of said bars increases preferably progressively from above the ridge of the roof toward the opposite sides of the walk.

The running board saddle, as shown in Fig, 3, comprises a vertical leg I0 secured to the carline cap and an outwardly extending horizontal arm ll which supports the vertical bars and` an upwardly extending portion I2 positioned between the bars so as to provide spacers therefor. These saddles may be welded, or otherwise secured, to the bars.

If the bars were ofthe same width and spacing but of variable depth the bars adjacent the middle of the walk would be weaker than the other bars, therefore, it may be desirable to progressively decrease the thicknesses and increase the height of the bars from adjacent the middle of the walk to the opposite sides thereof, as shown in Fig. 4, thereby obtaining a walk of substantially equal strength over the entire area thereof. This same result may be accomplished by using bars of the same thickness but of different depths and varying the distance between the bars so that the bars adjacent the middle of the walk are closer together than the bars adjacent 3 the sides thereof. This modication is shown in Fig. 5.

It may be desirable to provide means to maintain the bars in their relative position to each other by providing spacers which are provided with notches in the upper sides thereof to receive the longitudinal bars. As the bars are beams between: the adjacent saddles or carlineV caps (if saddlesA are notused) Iprefer^to^notch` the cross bars and not notch the longitudinal bars so that the longitudinal bars will not bef- Weakened as beams between their supports;

The accompanying drawings illustrate the preferred form of the invention, thougliitisto be understood that the invention-is-not' limited to the exact details of construction shown andl described, as it is obvious thatwariousmodica.- tions thereof, within the scope of the claims, will occur to persons skilled in the art.

I claim:

1; Aiwalkafonarailwayfcar havingzaeroof sloping downwardly onilopposite sides of? aA ridge: at

the longitudinal center of the car, said walkzcomprising a4 plurality ofi laterallyY spaced parallel bars; spaced verticallyf abovensaid roof the: tops of said bars being in a horizontal: plane, the

depthsof the: bars. increasing.: from. above.- the ridge of thelrooff toward; the. opposite sides, of the walk, the spacing of the bars andfthecross sectional area of the.' several lbars .being proportioned: relative' to; each other' so` that said walk is of substantially equal strength:over;thev entiref area;v of the walk to support` atvertica'l load..

2. A walk for a railway car having a roof,V sloping downwardlyy on opposite,` sides of' ay ridge at thelongitudinal 'center of :the can' said walkV comprising a: plurality of' laterally spaced; longitudinally extending paralleli lvarsof substantially` equal 'thickness spaced verticallyV above'saidroof, the topsofsaid` bars, beingrin a horizontallplane and the distancesv between` saidv` bars and the depths: of" saidv barsV increasingfrom-l above f the ridge offtheroof vtowardthe-opposite:sides of thej walk, .and means: to Vsupport said* bars: upon a said"y roof.

3'. Awalk-for afrailvvay1 car havingsaf-roof slop.-

ingV downwardly on: opposite sidesfof 'a' ridge at. theflongitudinal:centerof the car-,said walk com-- prisiiig' a plurality of substantially equally laterally spa-ced longitudinally extending: parallel` bars spaced vertically above said roof, the tops of said bars being in a horizontal plane and the depths of said bars increasing from above the ridge of the roof toward the opposite sides of the walk, and the thicknesses of said bars decreasing from above the apex of the roof toward the opposite sides of the walk, and means to support said'bars upon;said roof;

4. A walk for a railway-car having a roof sloping downwardly on opposite sides of a ridge at the longitudinal center of the car, said walk comprising a plurality of laterally spaced parallel bars spaced'vertically above said roof, the tops of 'saidx barsf being in a horizontal plane, said l bars beingoffsubstantially equal thickness, the

clepthslof'theV bars and the spacing of the bars increasing fromabove the ridge of the roof toward the opposite sides of the walk so.` that said walk` is of substantially equal strength over the entire area of the walk to support a Vertical lOad.'

5: AWalk-for a railway car-having-a roofslopying downwardlyon oppositesides of a rid-gevatthelongitudinal .centerlof the car, said walkcomprising a plurality; of laterally` spaced parallely bars-spaced vertically above said roof; the tops of saidbars being in ahorizontal plane; said. bars beingsubstantially equallyspaced' apart, thefl depths` ofthe bars,- increasingffrom abovethe,` ridge of, theroof f towardthe oppositefsides: of` theewalk, and-the thickness offthe bars-decreasingV from abovev the. ridge of the roofltowardvthe opposite sides of the walk so that said walkisofx substantially equalfstrengthiover. the entire, area ofthe walkto. support avertical 1oad.

GARTH G. GILPIN.'

REFERENCES. CITED The followingr references: are ofA record inthe:

le of4 this' patent:

UNITED' STATESS PATENTS 

